DirecTV profits up; subs disappoint

US satellite TV provider DirecTV’s profit and revenue rose in the first quarter but it added fewer subscribers than expected.

DirecTV added 81,000 new subscribers in the US in the quarter, missing analysts’ average forecast of 92,000. In Latin America, it added 593,000 new subscribers, which beat analysts’ estimates of 543,000.

Net income rose to $731 million from $674 million a year earlier. DirecTV’s revenue rose 12 per cent to $7.05 billion.